Corkscrew

ABSTRACT

A bottle opener has two parts which are slidable relative to one another and between which there is a pressure chamber. A corkscrew extends from one of these parts which has a cavity therein accommodating a valve and a gas cartridge. When the corkscrew is embedded in a cork in the neck of a bottle and the valve is actuated gas flows from the gas cartridge to the pressure chamber to move the two parts away from one another so that the cork is extracted.

3,815,448 [451 June 11, 1974' United States Patent [191 Artmer 1CORKSCREW Gero Artmer, Parkgasse 2, A-l030 Primary Lawreye smith ViennaAustria ASSISIGVII Examiner-Roscoe .Parker Oct. 10, 1972 [76] Inventor:

Attorney, Agentfor Firm-Woodhams, Blanchard &

Flynn n [22] Filed:

211 App]. No.1 296,245

[57] ABSTRACT A bottle opener has two parts which are slidable rela tiveto one another and between which there is a pres- W B B H B" a m m m D""m" y v. a" n 0 u .l r P a "w" n "a O m fiS a v U mm a p m fi n7 mn .w w"ms t hf 0 C o Uhm 11 will 0 218 B UHF I.

[56] v References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1964 Canieron 7 Cl 5Drawing g s FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS France Ell/3.2

PATENTEmua 1 mm SHEET 10F 2 FIG./

Pmimenm 1 1 m 3.815448 saw 20? 2 I CORKSCREW This invention relates tobottle openers.

A bottle opener is known from French Patent specification No. 1,030,349and in thecase of this bottle opener a corkscrew is carried by a pistonwhich is slidable in a tubular part which is engaged with the neck of abottle to be opened. In order to raise the piston, liquid is pumped by amanually operated pump from a container into a pressure chamber definedby the pis ton and the tubular part,

Two embodiments of this bottle opener are proposed in Frenchspecification No. 1,030,349 but both embodiments suffer from seriousdisadvantages. In one embodiment, the cork is extracted by a singlestroke of of thehigh frictional losses which occur, it is highly dubiouswhether such a bottle opener would be'capable of functioning underpractical conditions.

A bottle opener is also known from Swiss Paten specification No.373,273. This bottle opener is provided with a cannula which is driventhrough the cork and by means of which gas is introduced into thebottle, the pressure of gas within the bottle slowly driving the corkfrom it.

A bottle opener of this type suffers from a number of disadvantages.Because the cannula must be sharpened to a point, a danger of injury ordamage exists. Also, the cannula can very easily be bent out of shapeorbroken; Further, the gas entering the bottle influences the liquidpresent therein, which applies more particularly in the case of wine,becausethe gas customarily used dissolves in the wine. Since the spacebetween the liquid present in the bottle and the cork has to be filledwith gas, consumption of gas is high. For this reason, partially fullbottles cannot be opened with such a bottle opener because the space tobe filled with gas is too large to allow the required pressureto buildup to drive the cork out, or else the gas consumption is so high that atleast a substantial part of a cartridge charge is consumed. In the casewhere the corks are made of plas-- tics material, this bottle openerfails to function because the plastics material does not completely sealthe cannula and the gas, therefore, escapes from the bottle through thecork" and so the necessary pressure is not built up within the bottle todrive the cork out.

However, the most serious disadvantage of this type of bottle opener isthat many bottles cannot withstand the pressure of gas which builds upand explode. This can lead to extremely serious injuries; bottle-openersof this type cannot be sold in a number of countries for this veryreason.

According to the present invention there is provided a bottle openercomprising: two parts which are mounted for sliding displacementrelative to one another; a pressure chamber defined by the two parts;and a corkscrew extending from one part which is of approximatelycylindrical shape, the said one part being slidable within the otherpart which, in operation, is in engagement with the neck of a bottle,the said one part having a cavity therein, the cavity being accessiblefrom an end opposite the end from which-the corkscrew extends and beingdimensioned to receive agas cartridge'and valve means, the arrangementbeing such that, in operation, actuation of the valve. means causes gasto flow' from the gas cartridge into the pressure chamber whereby thetwo parts are displaced and the cork is extracted from the bottle.

Preferably the said other part at least partially surrounds a part ofthe cavity.

According to a preferred embodiment, the said one part has an axiallyextending annular space therein in which the said other part is guided,the two parts being sealed with respect to each other to define thepressure chamber.

The said one part may comprise two tubular sections fixed together. I

Preferably the cavity is dimensioned substantially to the shape of agiven gas cartridge.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provideda bottle opener comprising: two parts which are mounted for displacementrelative to one another; a pressure chamber defined by the two parts; acorkscrew extending from one part which is of approximately cylindricalshape, the said one part being slidable within the other part which, inoperation, is in engagement with a neck of a bottle, the said one parthaving a cavity therein, the cavity being accessible from an endopposite the end from which the corkscrew extends and being dimensionedto receive a gas -cartridge;and valve means actuation of which causesgas to flow from the gas cartridge into the pressure chamber whereby thetwo parts are displaced and the cork is extracted from the bottle.

lows the corkscrew to be rotated.

The invention is illustrated, merelyby way of exam-- I ple, in theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows, in axial section, a bottle opener according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 shows, also in axial section, a modification of part of thebottle opener of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 show, in elevation, a modification of part ofthe bottleopener of FIG. 1 with an actuating handle in two different positions;and

FIG. 5 shows the actuating handle as viewed in the direction of thearrow A of FIG. 3.

A bottle opener according to the present invention is illustrated inFIG. land comprises two parts 2, 3 which are mounted for slidingdisplacement relative to one another by a predetermined amount. The part2 consists of two tubular sections 2a, 2b which are fixed together. Thetubular section 2b carries, at its lower end (as seen in the drawings),a helical corkscrew 5.. Between the tubular sections 2a, 2b there isformed an annular gap in which the part 3 is guided. A gas cartridge 9and a valve arrangement 10 are inserted into a cavity 8 in the part 2,which cavity is accessible from the upper end of the tubular section 2bopposite to the end 3 which carries the corkscrew. The cavity 8 isdimensioned, so far as is possible, to the shape of the cartridge 9 inorder to avoidunnecessary wastage of space. In the annular gap formedbetween the tubular sections 20, 2b a pressure chamber 4 is formed bythepart- 3, which is sealed with respect'to" the tubular sections 2a, 2b by O-rings 7, 6 respectively. The valve arrangement 10 is sealed withrespect to the tubular section 2b by an O-ring 11 and, when actuated,allows gas from the cartridge 9 to enter the chamber 4 so that the twoparts 2, 3 are displaced relative to one another.

The valve arrangement 10 comprises a support element 13 in which aplunger 15, slidable by means of a push button 14, is supported andretained by a circlip 16. The plunger 15 is sealed with respect to thesupport element 13 by a sealing ring 17. in the undepressed position ofthe plunger 15, a vent bore 18,'arranged beneath the sealing ring 17, isin communication, through V the support element 13, with the atmosphereAtit's lower end the plunger 15 has a thrust bar with helical grooves'.ln the region of the thrust bar 20, the support element 13 is providedwith a radial bore 21 which is in communication with an'axial groove 22also provided in the support element 13; The bore 21 and the groove 22constitute 'a channel leading to the cavity 8.

Adjacent the thrust bar 20 there is a displaceable ball member 23. Theball member together with a conical sealing surface 24 constitute avalve portion of the valve arrangement 10. A hollow spike 25 is arrangedto penetrate a closure (not shown) of the gas cartridge 9 when the valvearrangement 10 is screwed into the cavity 8. The gas cartridge 9 issealed with respect to the valve arrangement 10 by means of a sealingelement 26 which surrounds the spike 25.

The tubular section 2a is provided, at its upper end, with a collar 28which serves as an upper abutment for the part 3. The tubular section2ais further provided at its lower end with a beak which protrudes intoa groove 29 in the part 3. The beak 30 serves as a lower abutment. Thus,the upper and lower abutments limit the relative sliding displacementofthe parts 2, 3.

To permit the corkscrew 5 to be driven more satisfactorily' into a cork33 which seals a neck'34 of a bottle, the part 2 may be provided withknurling 31.

As may be seen from FIG. 2, which shows a modification of part of thebottle. opener of FIG. 1, the part 3 need not be tubular but may have,at its upper end, a ring 35 which carries the O-rings 6 and 7 and webs36 which come to rest upon the neck of the bottle.

As shown by the modification illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 5, the valvearrangement 10 may have, at its upper .end, a peripheral part 35 ofoctagonal cross-section.

' sufficiently far that the spike 25 pierces the gas cartridge 9, theactuating handle 40 is disengaged from the part 35 which is now withinthe part 2. The actuating handle 40 can now be removed and reversed,that is to say, positioned as illustrated in FIG. 4. in this position,

splines. on a cylindrical part 42 come into engagement with matingsplines 19 provided on the periphery of the part-'2, Thus the corkscrew5 can be driven into a cork on rotation of the actuating handle 40.

"in order to open a bottle, the corkscrew 5 is driven into the cork 33until the bottle opener is in engagement with the neck 34 of the bottle.Thereupon, the push button 14 is depressed and the ball member 23 islifted from the conical sealing surface 24. Gas flows from the gascartridge 9 through the hollow spike 25, the grooves of the thrust bar20, the bore 21 and the groove 22 into the cavity 8 and out of thelatter through a bore 12 into the pressure chamber 4. As soon as thepressure which builds up in the pressure chamber 4 exceeds thefrictional force between the cork 33 and'the neck 34 of thebottle, thepart 3 slides relative to the part 2 which is fixed against the neck 34of the bottle. Thus the cork is extracted.

The dimensions of the part 3 are so chosen that the cork is extractedslowly even in the case where pressure in the gas cartridge 9 is high. v

The two parts 2, 3 are displaceable-relative to one another by an amountat least equal to the length of the cork, thus the extracted cork islocated totally within the part 3.

Because of the provision of the O-rings6, 7, 11 and the sealing element26, during extraction of the cork, gas consumption is limited to theamount of gas requiredto till the pressure chamber 4, the bore 12, thecavity 8, the groove 22, the bore 21, the thrust bar 20 and the hollowspike 25.

When the push button 14 is released, the ball member' 23 seats againsttheconicalsealing surface so that the plunger 15 moves upwardly. Thebore 18 thus communicates with the atmosphere so that the pressureprevailing in the pressure chamber 4, the cavity 8 etc. is released andbecomes equal to atmospheric pressure. Subsequently, the part 3 can beslid into the part 2 and the cork 3 becomes easily accessible so that itcan be removed from the corkscrew 5. The bottle opener is ready to beused again. Optionally, a radial bore (not shown) may also be providedin the section 2a which radial bore is exposed after the requireddisplacement of the part 3 relative to the part 2, so that the pressurechamber'4 is vented and the displacement is thereby limited.

The bottle opener is preferably made of light metal or hard plasticsmaterial. The gas cartridge 9 may be of the conventional type which hasa charge of carbon dioxide gas and'which has been developed for use withsoda syphons. The pressure of carbon dioxide in a conventional gascartridge is approximately 40 atmospheres at 22C and this is sufficientto enable the bot-.

tle' opener to be used "30 to 50 times. a

Because a slow build-up of pressure occurs in the pressure chamber 4,the two parts 2, 3 are uniformly mutually displaced and so the bottleopener has the advantage that the corkscrew is prevented from tearingout of the cork.

Because such a bottle opener can be handled like a conventionalcorkscrew, it can be used even when the gas cartridge is exhausted.Since, furthermore, the gas does not enter the bottle, the bottle cannotexplode and no deterioration of the liquid contained in the bottle, forexample, wine, by the gas occurs.

The bottle opener is suitable for opening partially emptied bottles andfor removing leaky corks and also torn-off champagne corks. lt canalsobe used for removing corks" fabricated of plastics material. By virtueof its construction, furthermore, the bottle opener consumes the minimumpossible quantity of propellant gas. Due to the fact that the gascartridge is arranged within the parts 2, 3 a space saving constructionis achieved and the bottle opener can therefore be given a highlyconvenient shape.

Corks of any desired types can be therefore removed from bottles withoutdifficulty with the bottle opener described above, whilst avoiding thedifficulties inherent in the prior art. More particularly, as soon asthe corkscrew has been screwed into the cork, no force is required toremove the cork from the neck of the bottle, and actuation of the bottleopener can be effected by only one hand,

I claim:

l. A bottle opener comprising: two parts which are mounted for slidingdisplacement relative to one another; a pressure chamber defined by thetwo parts; a corkscrew extending from one part which is of approximatelycylindrical shape, the said one part being .slidable within the otherpart which, in operation, is in engagement with the neck of a bottle;and a cavity defined within the said one part, the cavity beingaccessible from an end opposite the end from which the corkscrew extendsand being dimensioned to receivea gas cartridge and valve means, thearrangement being such that, in operation, actuation of the valve meanscauses gas to flow from the gas cartridge into the pressure chamberwhereby the two parts'are displaced and the cork is extracted from thebottle. 7

2. A bottle opener as claimed in claim 1 in which said other part atleast partially surrounds a part of the cavrty.

3. A bottle opener as claimed in claim lin which the said one part hasan axially extending annular space 5. A bottle opener as claimed inclaim 1 in which the cavity is dimensioned substantially to the shape ofa given gas cartridge.

6. A bottle opener comprisingi two parts which are mounted fordisplacement relative to one another; a pressure chamber defined by thetwo parts; a corkscrew extending from one part which is of approximatelycylindrical shape, the said one part being slidable within the otherpart which, in operation, is in engagement with a neck of a bottle; acavity defined within the said one part, the cavity being accessiblefrom an end opposite the end from which the corkscrew extends and beingdimensioned to receive a gas cartridge; and valve means actuation ofwhich causes gas to flow from the gas cartridge into the pressurechamber whereby the two parts are displaced and the cork is extractedfrom the bottle.

7. A bottle opener as claimed in claim 6 in which the valve means andthe said one part are provided with different peripheral sections, ahandle having apertures of a shape corresponding to the peripheralsections being provided so that the handle, when in a first position,allows the valve means to be screwed into said one part and, when in asecond position, allows the cork-

1. A bottle opener comprising: two parts which are mounted for slidingdisplacement relative to one another; a pressure chamber defined by thetwo parts; a corkscrew extending from one part which is of approximatelycylindrical shape, the said one part being slidable within the otherpart which, in operation, is in engagement with the neck of a bottle;and a cavity defined within the said one part, the cavity beingaccessible from an End opposite the end from which the corkscrew extendsand being dimensioned to receive a gas cartridge and valve means, thearrangement being such that, in operation, actuation of the valve meanscauses gas to flow from the gas cartridge into the pressure chamberwhereby the two parts are displaced and the cork is extracted from thebottle.
 2. A bottle opener as claimed in claim 1 in which said otherpart at least partially surrounds a part of the cavity.
 3. A bottleopener as claimed in claim 1 in which the said one part has an axiallyextending annular space therein in which the said other part is guided,the two parts being sealed with respect to each other to define thepressure chamber.
 4. A bottle opener as claimed in claim 3 in which thesaid one part comprises two tubular sections fixed together.
 5. A bottleopener as claimed in claim 1 in which the cavity is dimensionedsubstantially to the shape of a given gas cartridge.
 6. A bottle openercomprising: two parts which are mounted for displacement relative to oneanother; a pressure chamber defined by the two parts; a corkscrewextending from one part which is of approximately cylindrical shape, thesaid one part being slidable within the other part which, in operation,is in engagement with a neck of a bottle; a cavity defined within thesaid one part, the cavity being accessible from an end opposite the endfrom which the corkscrew extends and being dimensioned to receive a gascartridge; and valve means actuation of which causes gas to flow fromthe gas cartridge into the pressure chamber whereby the two parts aredisplaced and the cork is extracted from the bottle.
 7. A bottle openeras claimed in claim 6 in which the valve means and the said one part areprovided with different peripheral sections, a handle having aperturesof a shape corresponding to the peripheral sections being provided sothat the handle, when in a first position, allows the valve means to bescrewed into said one part and, when in a second position, allows thecorkscrew to be rotated.